


Breathe In

by PrettyArbitrary



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: Angst, Gen, Missing Scene, RvB Angst War, Sibling Rivalry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-13
Updated: 2016-03-13
Packaged: 2018-05-26 09:47:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6233824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrettyArbitrary/pseuds/PrettyArbitrary
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What happened before Wash reached the scene with the Dakotas in Recovery One.  Or, the Meta is too goddamn fast, and in a way South made this decision a long time ago.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breathe In

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt by [renaroo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RenaRoo/pseuds/RenaRoo) for the RVB Angst War: How South makes the decision to leave North and Theta behind to save herself

“Just fucking pull him!”

“I’m not going to feed Theta to that thing!”

 _So you’ll feed us to it instead?_ There was a time when South would’ve bothered with the comeback. But it’s been a long time since there was any point. She saw the writing on the wall back when he took Tex’s side.

North thinks she’s more _reasonable_ these days. She just lets him talk. Fucking men. You just let them get on with their word vomit and they think they’re the shit.

“On your six!”

“Jesus fuck, North, you know how clocks work?”

“He’s so goddamn fast…”

Oh, she’s heard it all in her day. You watch each other’s back. You fight for goddamn family. You’ve only got each other. You bleed for blood.

Shit yeah she has. Sheds a little more of it right now as a stray bit of shrapnel wings her from the goddamn brute shot. What kind of insane son of a bitch uses a rocket launcher for a close range weapon? And to think she always liked Maine’s style.

Who the fuck’s going to shed blood for her, that’s what she wants to know. Never you fucking mind; she’s already got her answer. Had it ever since North white knighted himself all over Tex and York’s stupidass stunt back on the _Mother of Invention._ The answer is _nobody._ North’ll put out buckets of the red stuff for the _team,_ for the _cause,_ for motherfucking _Theta._ But his own goddamn twin sister? Yeah, she’s on her own.

 _“South!”_ Theta’s piercing scream is wrapped up with North’s. She swears and hurls herself face-first down a muddy bluff to dodge the monstrosity suddenly in her face. He’s too fast. Superhumanly fast.

They’re going to die here. She’s going to die here, and North is going to fucking die here and let her fucking die here for the sake of a computer chip with an anxiety problem, and what’s left of Maine is going to take what he wants anyway, and _she fucking resigned from this shit, thank you_.

She rolls to her feet at the bottom of the bluff, gun pointed at the enemy before her head even finishes turning, and stares up at the hulking white shape that used to be her teammate. She flipped on North years ago, as soon as they pulled themselves together after the crash. _Family_ is for shit, blood doesn’t buy you loyalty, and when the one asshole who was supposedly genetically disposed to be on her side aimed guns in her face, goddamn if she wasn’t going to take her cue. If he wouldn’t have her back, he’d be her stepping stone to better things. And goddamn if she’s going to let a zombie Freelancer eat her brains for the sake of a covert babysitting assignment for some overly chatty equipment.

But Maine isn’t moving. He’s staring down at her with the sun turning that gold dome into a solar flare, and so long as she doesn’t fire, he’s not going to come after her, is he? She’s out of his way. He wants the AI, and she doesn’t have one.

She doesn’t have a cocksucking AI, and it’s suddenly so funny that she chokes across their comm band trying not to laugh.

North makes some kind of sound of concern. In the second it takes her to blink the tears of discomfort from her eyes, Maine’s not in her line of sight anymore. He’s so goddamn fast. And all she has to do to get out of this alive is just take a deep slow breath before she shouts her warning.


End file.
